1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an outlet device for coin payout hoppers used in vending machines, game machines, coin exchangers or the like, in particular to an outlet chute adapted for guiding coins, to a vertically extending escalator out of the coin payout hopper.
2. Related Art Statement
Hitherto, there is a coin payout hopper as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,589,433 comprising a hopper for storing coins, a rotary disc rotatably mounted on a supporting plate inclined at an angle to the horizontal within said hopper, a plurality of delivery pins spaced in the peripheral direction of the rotary disc and a delivery knife for guiding coins at an upper delivery portion to a discharge chute.
Some coin payout hoppers of the type mentioned above are provided with an outlet device which comprises an outlet chute for receiving coins discharged from the coin payout hopper, and an escalator which is connected at the lower end thereof to an upper outlet of the outlet chute and upwardly extends from the outlet chute for transferring coins to a coin tray which is elevated with respect to the hopper as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,258.
In the conventional outlet chute of such an outlet device, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the outlet chute 1 is composed of outside and inside front plates 2 and 3, a coin supporting back plate 4 inclined at an angle to the horizontal and outside and inside edge plates 5 and 6 interposed between the front and back plates to define a curved coin guiding passage 7 extending from a lower inlet 8 receiving coins "C" from a payout hopper to an upper outlet 10 connected to the lower end of the escalator 11. The curved coin guiding passage 7 has a depth between the front and back plates greater than the thickness of the coins, but less than twice the thickness of the coins and a width between the edge plates also greater than the diameter of the coins. The width of the curved coin guiding passage is defined by opposed outer and inner coin guiding edge faces 12 and 13 of the outside and inside edge plates 5 and 6 positioned at the outer and inner sides in relation to a center of curvature of the curved guiding passage 7, respectively. The outside and inside front plates 2 and 3 are rigidly secured to the back plate 4 together with the edge plates 5 and 6 by means of screws 15 and 16, respectively. The outside and inside front plates 2 and 3 have extensions 2a and 3a beyond the coin guiding edge faces 12 and 13 of the edge plates 5 and 6, respectively, to engage with the outer peripheral portion of the coins to retain the coins in the curved guiding passage and to prevent the coins from dropping out of the passage. Thus, the outlet chute 1 receives coins C pushed into the guiding passage 7 through the lower inlet 8 in the horizontal direction as shown by an arrow "A" and guides coins in single edge-to-edge file in the curved guiding passage 7 defined by the outside and inside front plates 2 and 3, the edge plates 5 and 6 and the back plate 4 towards the upper outlet 10 in the vertical direction as shown by an arrow "B" by a mutual thrust of coins pushed out of the coin payout hopper.
Such a conventional outlet device as mentioned above has drawbacks such that a deformed coin can be jammed in the guiding passage by outwardly or inwardly pushing against the edge of an adjacent coin. In such a case, the adjacent coin slips behind or in front of the deformed coin and against the front plates and blocks the passage of coins in the guiding passage.